Acne Studios

Not a skin care line… but a stylish Swedish fashion brand that’s finally setting up shop in Tokyo.

Don’t be deceived by the unfortunate name – despite its connotation with a teenage skin condition, the brand is all about sleek and edgy Scandinavian ready-to-wear clothes. The name actually stands for Ambition to Create Novel Expression, and the creative collective was formed back in 1996 in Stockholm, Sweden. They quickly rose to international fame with their raw denim jeans at the end of the last decade, and were one of the few avant-garde brands that brought skinny jeans back to the market.

Acne’s womenswear, menswear, childrenswear, shoes and accessories are now sold in over 50 countries, with flagship stores found in Stockholm, New York, London, Paris and, soon – December 14 to be exact – in Tokyo. Interestingly, the company does not advertise or market itself through traditional fashion campaigns. Instead, the label publishes the magazine Acne Paper twice a year, covering areas such as art, fashion, photography, design, architecture, and culture. Each issue is based around a theme that is interpreted by contributors from their field of expertise, and noteworthy participants have included the likes of Noam Chomsky, David Lynch, Azzedine Alaïa, and Mario Testino.

The new shop in Minami Aoyama will be Acne’s Japanese flagship store. The 260 meters of retail space, spread over three floors, will reflect the brand’s image, as each shop is known as a studios, and aims to recreate the atmosphere of a creative working space. Running with the theme ‘home within a store’, the interior features wood, stone and fabric accents – fundamentally it appears Scandinavian yet channels the brand’s edginess.

If you like clean lines, jeans, leather, and simple but hip designs, make sure you visit the Swedish import and browse the website to get a little preview and make your shopping list…